Publisher Sarah Jackson storms first decade and shares spoils
A decade of stormy weather may not be everyone’s cup of tea but for publisher Sarah Jackson it’s been absolutely perfect – and she’s looking forward to the next 10 years at Stormy Knight.
Stormy Knight’s presence at this week’s Top Drawer included marking the publishing business’ milestone birthday right where it started at the London trade show, with cake, balloons and a special raffle for customers placing orders at the three-day event at Kensington Olympia which finishes today, 17 January.
“The past 10 years have flown by and I’m still trying to work out where they’ve gone!” Bristol-based Sarah told PG Buzz, “it’s a cliché but it doesn’t feel like work when you find a job that you love – and I’m still just as passionate about this industry as I was when I joined it in 2013 with a modest collection of 36 designs and not much of a clue.
“I’m so grateful to all of our customers, some of which have been with us since the very beginning and I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of them for supporting us over the last decade – and we’ve weathered the Covid storm and come out the other side with growth.”
With her proudest moments including Henries awards’ nominations for Best Contemporary Trend, Most Promising Young Designer, Best Children’s Range, and Best Cute Range, Sarah added: “And then we finally won Best Christmas Counter Range at the 2022 awards night!”
She’s also picked up a Paper Award at Top Drawer 2019, developed Stormy Knight’s Bloom seedstick collection, and grown her portfolio of illustrators to double figures – including Alex Foster, Clare Owen, Daria Solak, Eleonora Arrosio from Italy, Ireland’s Fatti Burke and Rhubarb Paper from Nova Scotia – as well as keeping to sustainable values with plastic-free packaging.
And Top Drawer saw Stormy Knight launch its die-cut collection by Parisian designer Marylou Chalon, along with a children’s collection from American illustrator Grace Habib, plus more in the popular Holly Maguire collection, fresh seasonal designs in the award-winning Bloom collection along with brand-new Bloom notebooks, and Eleonora’s latest Love Lines Valentine range,
“I set up Stormy Knight to enable me to be creative and to enjoy going to work every day, that ethos will always be at the centre of the business and we’ll always be an indie company with indie values,” said Sarah, who has also recently joined the GCA council.
“I do hope to keep growing the company at a sustainable rate and to work with more and more talented illustrators whose work complements our brand. We’ve a brand-new Stormy Knight HQ, and this year will see my sister join the company, taking on more of the operational and administrative roles, allowing me to focus more on the creative development of the company, which I’m really excited about.
“I want to keep coming up with creative new ideas and directions for greeting cards and I’d love for Stormy Knight to be one of the first companies that comes to mind when shops are looking for contemporary cards that are must-haves for their shelves – and, of course, we’d love to bag a few more Henries!”
Top: Sarah Jackson returned to Top Drawer to celebrate Stormy Knight’s 10th birthday
